Lac Alban Fishing Guide, Saguenay/Lac-Saint-Jean, Quebec

• Overview

  Lac Alban is one of the Saguenay/Lac-Saint-Jean waters in Quebec. The bank gives way to taiga. It covers about 5 hectares, so this is small water you can walk round in under an hour. Chibougamau is the closest place, 74 km off. Saguenay sits 220 km out, and it is the nearest city worth the name. No county line comes close, which keeps the paperwork simple.

• Where to Fish on Lac Alban

  Our records hold no depth for this water. This is a lake, so the margins and the first drop matter most. A soft bed grows weed late into autumn, which keeps fish shallow. County-wide records name northern pike, Atlantic salmon and lake whitefish. Some of the species recorded here are protected or tightly regulated, so check what may be targeted before you fish. On Lac Alban the first feature you find is usually worth a session.

• Seasonal Patterns

  July runs about 16°C on average, January about -19°C. A short, intense season is the rule this far north. The open season starts with the thaw, near enough early May. The season between ice runs from about early May to mid November. Early summer and early autumn carry the open-water season. That is the shape of the year on Lac Alban.

• Tackle & Baits

  No access rule appears in what we hold. There is no mapped parking or launch close by, which usually means walking in. Pike mean a wire trace, no exceptions; big spoons and jerkbaits do the searching. A landowner's word beats anything printed elsewhere. Signs go up and come down, so check on the day. If the gate is shut, Lac Cheffois at 0.9 km is the nearest alternative. Nothing on Lac Alban should be assumed from this page alone.